35 foot deep sink hole falls open in Des Moines street PHOTOS

35-foot deep sink hole in Des Moines city street. WHO TV

DES MOINES, Iowa  -  Des Moines street crews have some work to do after a man in a truck nearly fell into a 35 foot sink hole that caved in behind him as he drove on a city street this weekend.  

One neighbor took photos of the hole in the 3600 block of SW 12th Street before city crews covered the hole.  PHOTOS BELOW 

“I came outside and there was a giant hole there. It was like 35 feet deep, so it was kind of shocking,"  Kyle Weeden tells WHO Channel 13.

City crews say a water pipe is to blame, and it is unlikely the hole will extend further.

“Apparently there was a water pipe that was leaking, and it caused everything to kind of corrode," Weeden said.

Neighbors say Des Moines Police were called by a driver who narrowly escaped falling into the sink hole.

“From what I heard, the truck went over it, he didn’t go into the hole, thankfully, but he was almost going to sink in and then gunned it," resident Jenna Lamparek tells WHO News.  

Des Moines police say there are a lot of underground coal mines on the south side of Des Moines, but there is no word on whether this hole is connected to the mines.

3600 block of SW 12th Street blocked off.  WHO TV

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